Kings and Philosophers Shit, And So Do Ladies

What do people who go to clubs a lot do in the club?

2010-04-29T12:33:00.005-04:00

Unrelated to politics, history, philosophy, economics. Unrelated even to what's been the spirit of this blog - that spirit being "nothing", ("aether"?) since I never update the thing - since these are words and they exist. (Blogito ergo sum!)I'm going to structure this post as a classical, Logic 101 piece of argumentation with the twist that after drawing a simple conclusion I'll be asking

A problem of how we speak about politics

2009-11-30T14:09:00.002-05:00

I'm listening to Tony Judt's 2009 NYU/Remarque Lecture right now, and he's making an extremely good point: we don't know how to talk about politics any more, aside from being able to ask "is [a given policy] efficient [eg cheap]?" Rather than: Is it good? Bad? Fair? Right? Wrong?More on this later.

Pretty Words

2009-11-16T15:14:00.001-05:00

Nice phrases and sentences:bricks made of mist

Hey There, Smart Guy

2009-10-02T11:29:00.002-04:00

Richard Holbrooke is not only a badass, he's a smart badass. Which is why this post in Harper's is so very thought-provoking. What the hell does calling someone "smart" mean anymore?

Computers: Plug In, Learn From A God

2009-09-30T12:13:00.004-04:00

Right, so Dave Van Ronk is the Bob Dylan your ex-hippie-turned-banker father never told you about 'cus he was never really that into the music anyway. Van Ronk was actually Bob Dylan's first New York City mentor/guru/object of worship. That should tell you something. It won't tell you everything, though. For that, you should listen to his music. Here's him giving a guitar lesson on the old song

Normative and Analytic, Continued

2009-09-13T21:36:00.004-04:00

Right, so back to this topic. Lying awake the other night thinking about it, I remembered something Michael Oakeshott said about something like this in a characterictically more elegant and approachable way (though he was talking about something else at the time, namely university education). Instead of using clunky terms like normative and analytic to describe something like Marxism being

Normative and Analytic

2009-09-10T12:40:00.003-04:00

I'm currently reading an interesting survey of international political economy by a Princeton scholar whose name slips my mind right now. It's a very well-written and seemingly balanced look at things; the author gives due weight not only to liberal and neoliberal political economy, but to the Marxist and nationalist varieties as well.I want to talk about this book a little more, but an

Knowing & Doing: Oakeshott on Plato

2009-08-13T12:40:00.002-04:00

"In Plato's view of things, knowing and explaining are joint with making and doing. [...] What joins them is this belief that both knowing and doing are impossible without reference to the 'idea' [archetype or model] of what is to be known and the 'idea' of what is to be done."(MJO, Lectures in the History of Political Thought. Imprint Academic: 2006)Comments on this later!

American Holy War

2009-08-06T19:39:00.001-04:00

Also, this:The president of the United States, in a top-secret phone call to a major European ally, asked for French troops to join American soldiers in attacking Iraq as a mission from God. Now out of office, Chirac recounts that the American leader appealed to their “common faith” (Christianity) and told him: “Gog and Magog are at work in the Middle East…. The biblical prophecies are being

Armchair Judgment of Extremely Uncivil Healthcare Protests

2009-08-06T19:35:00.002-04:00

I don't know what's really on the minds of the citizens currently ransacking their local congressperson's town hall meeting or office the country over. Some say they're little more than actors (scripts provided) paid or encouraged by special interests who seek to preserve the status quo of "no healthcare for one sixth of the population, poor healthcare for fourth sixths of the population, and

All The Roadrunning

2009-08-06T13:53:00.001-04:00

"Time heals all wounds.""Time wounds all heels.""Time wounds, all heals." Like my friend Luca says, it's been emotional.

Firefox RAM Vortex Revisited: Documentation

2009-08-06T00:26:00.006-04:00

The earlier post about my shifting browser preferences and RAM-hoarding contained a few anecdotal claims about Firefox and Safari, but little in the evidence department. By way of showing you some, let me link to you Lifehacker's recent conversation with Mike Beltzner, the director of Firefox. The whole thing is quite interesting for a net-denizen ignorant of the nuts-and-bolts of browser design,

Possession

2009-08-05T00:32:00.002-04:00

To possess something or someone physically is distinct from doing so imaginatively. (This is from that book on Proust, by the way.)The former is akin to instant gratification, and the latter allows for not only deeper understanding and knowledge, but also love.More on this later.

Proust

2009-08-04T19:14:00.002-04:00

Just finished "How Proust Can Change Your Life." If I ever break a leg and find myself immobile for six months, I will definitely read A la Recherche de Temps Perdu. From what I can tell, Proust was basically a gay, French Larry David, and Recherche was his "Seinfeld."

Wonder

2009-07-29T12:11:00.000-04:00

One of the best feelings in my life is fascination, or wonder. It's one of the ends of curiosity, which is important to keep in mind.

Google Wave; Mach-5 Pace of Technological Change; AMR Perspires

2009-07-22T17:17:00.004-04:00

Just watched this presentation on Google Wave, a product Mountain View will launch later this year that's already in developer preview. Wave's headline is:"What would it look like if email were designed, from scratch, today?"In slightly more detail, and hopefully rendered in such a way that my parents could understand it, is this. A wave will be a "thing" on the internet thata) will subsume (if

Back to Ideas, and to History!

2009-07-22T14:20:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I received in the mail by crisp new (used) copy of Richard Neustadt and Ernest May's Thinking In Time: The Uses Of History For Decision Makers (Free Press 1986). Simply hearing that such a book exists, and that it isa) largely unnoticed these daysb) extremely and awesomely relevantc) written by two excellent scholars of their respective fields (the American presidency and diplomatic

Firefox With Awesome Addons Is A Serious RAM-Vortex

2009-07-22T13:26:00.003-04:00

The reader will find it useful to know that if1) there exists a Hell2) the guilty are sent there3) Dante Alighieri's depiction of it is accuratethen yours truly might be placed in the Fourth Circle, eternal home of the Hoarders and the Wasters. Why, you might ask if you cared (which is admittedly not likely but then this blog has no readers anyway)? Well, because I am a fanatical

/twilight zone

2009-07-21T23:52:00.004-04:00

How is the English writer/philosopher Alain de Botton following me on Twitter whena) I've never followed him on Twitter (until three or so seconds ago, after he followed me)b) I'm in the middle of his most recent bookc) his Twitter account looks to be only 1.5 days oldd) his Twitter account looks to be real (how can I tell? It's mundane, just like reality and all Twitter accounts are, at bottom)e

Books I Have Not Read

2009-07-19T15:19:00.004-04:00

Growing up casually Catholic, and growing up further by distancing myself from Catholicism equally casually, I saw something truthful about confession. Nothing original, mind you. It just seemed, from a child's point of view, intriguing that by speaking truthfully about one's conduct anxiety could vanish almost magically. So it's equally intriguing (but extremely rare) to encounter very

First Inaugural Post About How Physics Is Fascinating But I'm A Numbskull

2009-07-17T15:41:00.004-04:00

The above is Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation. The m's are the masses of the two bodies, and r is the distance between them. G is the Gravitational Constant, which comes out to something like 6.673 x10^-11. Why am I posting this? Because apparently Bill Gates bought the rights to a series of lectures of the famous eccentric and funny physicist Richard Feynman, who sounds like Frank

This is a test post...

2009-07-16T18:59:00.001-04:00

...for the new layout.

Thematic Connections

2009-07-16T17:32:00.010-04:00

Yes, it's all one story. That being out of the way, I've just noticed a connection between the theme - and in particular, the cover art - of Mark Knopfler's 2004 album "Shangri-La" and Beck's 1998 song "Tropicalia." Here is the MK cover.Below are Beck's lyrics: When they beat Upon a broken guitar And on the streets They reek of tropical charms The

When the Levee Breaks

2009-07-16T17:26:00.003-04:00

You go'n fall right outta bed.***This will be cryptic.Something's changing. Something's working.I don't have many choices, but I can choose what to pay attention to.Water.

Thinkers and Doers

2009-06-25T19:34:00.004-04:00

A follow-up to my post from earlier.First, even though this blog has no readers, I offer apologies to my readers for said post because it has little to do with the purpose of this journal. The post was about my mental health, and without going into too much detail about so private a subject on the bloody internet, I'll try to make up for it by continuing some of the thoughts I had, but this time,

2009-06-25T15:10:00.003-04:00

I'm a little bit excited because I'm very near the point of utter desperation that will allow me to fix all of this.(Before I go further, bookish readers might profit from the knowledge that I've just read Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich for the first time. So concerns about frittering away one's time on meaningless pursuits are on my mind.)Up to this point I haven't been able to give myself

Iran and New Media: A New Liberal Internationalism?

2009-06-16T16:23:00.003-04:00

Wild Speculation to Follow:Critics of liberal internationalism - "interventionism" - generally hold the position that there is something disingenuous - even imperialistic - about our seemingly innocent impulse to export democracy, or order, or food or medicine to places we think need it. Doing these things, they say, is really a front for age-old wants: resources, manpower, and whatever else is

green

2009-06-15T03:29:00.002-04:00

http://bit.ly/19VfKC

Elections In Iran

2009-06-14T14:15:00.003-04:00

It appears something is happening in Iran. Some are calling it a coup. Not your normal-style from-the-outside-in coup, but a from-the-side-and-to-the-top kinda coup. That is, the highly conservative and bellicose portion of the Iranian government has rigged an election (and quite poorly), imposed a result, and taken measures to prevent "pushback" - no cell phone service, no satellite, jammed

On Over-Reading

2009-06-13T19:07:00.001-04:00

One recent weekend afternoon, I sidled up to a table at the club where some family and friends were sitting. Book in hand, as usual, I decided to join them. (I'm pretty sure the volume was a history of Israel, but I might be wrong.)All present had been enjoying some grilled fish and white wine; I'd already eaten. But the usual sobremesa after-meal chitchat had begun, and not a large amount of

Manual Labor and Brainy, Bookish Types: An Overlooked Match?

2009-06-08T15:33:00.001-04:00

Prompted in part by that huge NYT piece the other day by that pol-phil doctorate guy who now repairs motorcycles in West Virginia, I've begun an inquiry into the matter: I, personally, am going to re-paint my electric guitar, and see if it brings me any perspective or Zen or at least a fun "hey, cool" moment.Updates to follow. Maybe...twitter updates!!!????

Edward Said

2009-06-04T23:42:00.001-04:00

Reading "Culture and Imperialism," my first lengthy encounter with the man's work.First impression: I should have picked this stuff up sooner.I want to follow this up later.

Obama In Cairo

2009-06-04T13:39:00.004-04:00

Long time, no see. Sorry.I'll usually try to stay away from the din of day-to-day politics, but I thought I'd copy-paste a comment made by a reader at Andrew Sullivan's on today's speech. It puts the nail in the coffin of last November.All my problems with Obama's handling of the financial crisis, the details about Gitmo, footdragging on DADT, etc. or any other details since he took office fade

Shooting The Terrible Master

2009-03-04T16:20:00.004-05:00

I'm in the middle of reading a New Yorker piece on the late David Foster Wallace. As is typical of internet reading habits the world over, I paused halfway through to explore DFW's 2005 Commencement Speech to Kenyon College, which is mentioned in the article. Copy, paste, Google search bar, results, wiki, and finally, a transcript of the speech.I'm going to finish DT Max's profile after posting;

Happy Presidents' Day

2009-02-16T15:43:00.003-05:00

Your favorite resident-alien and rootless cosmopolite wishes you a merry POTUS-day.On NPR this afternoon I heard one of Abe Lincoln's campaign songs from the 1860 Presidential race. (It was re-recorded, of course.) Here are the lyrics:Hurrah for the choice of the nationour chieftain so brave and so truewe’ll go for the great reformationfor Lincoln and Liberty, too!We'll go for the son of Kentucky

Inaugural K&P Zombie-Related Post

2009-02-02T16:10:00.002-05:00

I'm not well-versed in any Victorian literature, nor have I ever read Pride and Prejudice. But after seeing this, I think I have to remedy these oversights.

The Dreaded "First Israel/Palestine Post"

2009-01-26T18:06:00.002-05:00

This is the point in the lifetime of this blog where I say, "As an ignorant, distant non-expert, I ought to have my say about the state of Middle East politics!" With the shitstorm that[Late Edit 7/17/2009: I don't know what happened above. Did I write something and then delete it? Or just hit "Publish" without finishing...er, without even really beginning? I don't know.]

Footnotes or Endnotes?

2009-01-26T16:13:00.004-05:00

I have always preferred footnotes. They have two glaring advatanges:1. No need to go dog-earin' at the end of the book or chapter, thus messing up how you wear in a new book's spine.2. The relevant note more quickly absorbed, you can immediately return to the text with minimal interruption of the author's line of reasoning.Whenever I go to the bookstore or library these days, however, I notice

More History, But, Like, the Recent Kind

2009-01-21T11:40:00.003-05:00

A Lucky Guest Attends the InaugurationAs I tore through the boulevards of the capital yesterday morning, sirens blaring, I wondered why the Secret Service agent driving the truck looked as if he thought it was just another Tuesday. Stone-faced, with closely-cropped hair and sunglasses, I might have mistaken him for hired security at a Division-III college basketball game were it not for the

I Had A Great Post In Mind...

2009-01-14T08:46:00.004-05:00

...but I've forgotten it. So instead, I'll post this poem by Charles Baudelaire that my first college professor gave us at 9am on our first day of college, in my freshman seminar. It's called "Get Drunk."*** One should always be drunk. That's all that matters;that's our one imperative need. So as not to feel Time'shorrible burden one which breaks your shoulders and bows you down, you must get

Pope

2009-01-12T21:03:00.003-05:00

"Know then thyself, presume not God to scan;The proper study of Mankind is Man"-Alexander Pope, An Essay On Man, ii 1I'm proud to share a name with this man.

Machiavelli

2009-01-12T20:14:00.003-05:00

My new mission in life at this very second is to debunk the notion that Machiavelli is some cynical prick who throws himself at the feet of despots and tells'em that fear is good and kill the innocent and blablabla allahuakhbar.I guess it's more of a fantasy, though, because Isaiah Berlin already did it. "The Originality of Machiavelli" had me in its grips for a ten hour flight from Paris to

Who watches the Watchmen?

2009-01-09T22:11:00.004-05:00

With the movie looming, it's a popular question to ask. It sounds philosophical, it's chock full of Plato, and it's got that rhythmic double consonance goin' on.But I've heard people ask it as if there's no good answer, rhetorically, like that "tree falls in the forest" Zen bananas.In fact, there is an answer, and it comes from - who else - Michael Oakeshott. Who watches the guardians? The

The Philosophical Full Disclosure Club

2009-01-09T14:55:00.003-05:00

I'm sitting here wondering about ratios. One in particular, but I don't know how to explain it succinctly.What is the ratio, in academia and in life, betweena) the amount of times people cite the virtue of knowing what it is you don't know andb) admitting in some kind of public forum that, frankly, they don't know x?I think a lot about intellectual honesty, and it's driven by a Philip K.

Sam Huntington, RIP

2008-12-31T18:47:00.003-05:00

That bane of my polisci major, Harvard political scientist Samuel Huntington, passed away some days ago. Although I could never - and still can't - make up my mind about his most famous contribution to the conversation of mankind, the mid-90's "Clash of Civilizations" thesis, I find it instructive to look back upon it and its counterpoints on the occasion of his death.Furthermore, with Tzipi and

A Month In, Ennui Begins

2008-12-30T14:20:00.004-05:00

Here at "Kings and Philosophers," we try to disseminate only the driest, densest, and utterly droll samples from your local Ivy-League book repository. Our intention, as stated in our shitty mission-statement of a first post, is merely to be a private journal for the author(s) -- but the kind of private journal your little sister leaves sitting unlocked at her desk with her bedroom door wide open

Maimonides

2008-11-20T16:56:00.005-05:00

"The real purpose of wealth or any other acquisition'should be to expend it for noble purposes, and to employ it for the maintenance of the body and the preservation of life, so that its owner may obtain a knowledge of God, in so far as that is vouchsafed unto man.'" - Sherwin Nuland, quoting Maimonides' Shemoah Perakim (Maimonides:2005)This while explaining the persistence throughout history of

Welcome!

2008-11-20T14:29:00.001-05:00

The title of this weblog is a witty saying by the great French essayist Michel de Montaigne, who I heard described somewhere as "the original blogger." I intend for this space to deal primarily in the history of political thought - those very "kings and philosophers" - and to do so in such a way that reflects Montaigne's (and my) unshakeable conviction that people are just that - people - and,